Unique Ways to Raise Funds for your Rowing Club
Along with our friends at Rowperfect UK, we bring you a collection of the diverse activities which rowing clubs undertake in order to raise funds every year. This quarterly fundraising post is unique to our previous ideas. We’re focusing strictly on food, crafts, and creative inspiration. *Absolutely none of these ideas remotely resembles an erg-a-thon.
Want more great ideas? Check out our e-book: Fundraising Hints and Tips for your Rowing Club.
Everybody wants a Bite
Farmers Market
Set up a booth at the Farmers Market, or in the case of the Trail Mix bar, sporting events such as school athletic competitions.
- An old-fashioned, rustic popcorn bar – would be great to host a movie night a month in the school auditorium and sell popcorn and tickets to the show!
- Mini S’mores grill at a hot-chocolate bar. If you want to go big, couple with renting out an ice-skating rink for a day, or get it on donation. Charge tickets for students at your school to attend, and charge for tasty refreshments!
- Trail Mix Bar – everything an athlete needs to keep going.
Club Pancake Breakfast
Host a pancake breakfast like Rochester Rowing Club did. Because a) everybody loves breakfast, and b) pancakes are immensely easy to make tasty. Which makes this a great event for high school rowers or those with a little less cooking experience. Sell tickets to attend.
Flavours of the World Fundraiser
Host a tasting event in which 6 pairs of team members cook cuisine from a different corner of the world, tickets are sold to taste from different tables and you can have a drinks table as well.
DIY
It’s time to get crafty. A great group activity – your team can have DIY nights in preparation for these events.
- Get crafty – make mini pinatas and sell them at the elementary schools in your area for birthday parties. You could also have a stand at the farmers market or other craft markets in your area.
- These paper fortune cookies couldn’t be easier to make. They’re fun for dinner parties, or can be part of a bigger fundraiser – as favors on tables at a dinner or luncheon fundraising event. They can also be sold at your craft table, along with your team’s other DIY goods.
- Punch box for party favors – As a fundraising alternative you could have each color as a different donation level with items you need behind each box – or for daring donors – mystery items at all different levels.
- Earbud holders – Use your home ec class to make something your peers would love to buy. This earbud case has a key ring built in. They can be made in lots of fun and funky colors and patterns – can you see a fad running through your high school?
Inspiration
Use a website like, 50 Creative and Easy Fundraising Ideas, to spur your imagination in creating your own fundraisers. A few of our favorites are below, and are targeted at junior rowing teams.
Favorites:
- Karaoke Time: Trust me, people will pay to see you sing. Have participants raise pledges for their commitment to karaoke and sell tickets to the performance. If contestants are feeling timid about their vocal abilities, they can always lip-sync.
- Wrap it Up: You’re team is working for what you get here, but alternating days with different members, you might be surprised what you can earn for your club: coordinate with a store to offer gift wrap services during the holidays.
- Another Man’s Treasure: A Yard sale, simple, and to the point. Collect gently used items from group members to be sold at a yard sale.
- Sit-a-thon: Offer babysitting services for a designated evening or two.
- Go Hairless: Feeling brave? Volunteers commit to shaving their heads if a specified amount is raised by a deadline.
- Make the Grade: Have students get pledges for “A’s” and “B’s” at the beginning of a quarter and collect the donations after report card time.
- Luncheon, Fashion Show and Raffle, all in one.Steel City Rowing Club did it, and you can too.